>> right now on "matter of fact." it's part of american history. give me your tired, your poor. a comfort for those who flee to our shores. >> everybody has a heartbreak. everybody comes from something that is unimaginable. >> strangers in our midst. >> they say the intelligent guy is someone who can adapt his life to any condition. >> cap seeking a better life. >> the american dream. how are we welcoming those who seek refuge in america? plus, this gridiron giant visits the end zone. already based in lebanon.

-- for refugees in lebanon. >> when we landed i looked out the window and i was nervovous. >> what he says now about the end game for millions in need of a home. ♪ soledad: welcome to matter of fact. the search for a better life can sometimes cost lives and in 2015 more than 5000 men, women, and children died fleeing their home nations, running way from armed conflicts, hunger, and political infighting. that search for a new home free from persecution, poverty and war is turning families into refugees. today, we focus on them. the u.s. has resettled 3 million refugees since congress passed the refugee act of 1980. that's roughly the population of the -- chicago.

one small city outside atlanta is embracing its role as a new home for those seeking a new start. clarkston, georgia has been resettling refugees for more than two decades. living within its one-and-a-half square miles, there are some 40 nationalities with whites now in the minority. and even as president trump's so-called travel ban brings new uncertainty about the immigration policy. here's correspondent jessica gomez. >> through the window you may get a latte or cappuccino. the staff as exotic as the drinks they make. >> this community has beautiful diversity. >> a grandmother of eight open the coffee company to offer refugees who come to clarkston some southern hospitality. >> the coffee shop is an

extension of the american living room and if we can show people how hospitality is done and a place that feels safe, why wouldn't we do that? >> for some refugees, with the welcome comes a job. it's a step up from the chicken processing plant became when he first came to the u.s. the former high school teacher fled persecution in the democratic republic of congo. >> the situation is not good there, no peace or freedom of speech. >> at 24 years old, he supports his entire family with the job, the former dental student escape syria, leaving his possessions and dreams behind. >> we were driving and hearing from two sides, and hearing, shots, bombs, rockets. >> everybody has a heartbreak. everybody comes from something that is unimaginable to me. >> it was in the late 1980's

that the small city of clarkston was targeted as a refugee resettlement area. the available transportation and proximity to atlanta made it ideal. as did the large number of multi-family apartment buildings, left empty as suburban american families moved further away. once a site for kkk gatherings, today, about half of clarkston is foreign born, some 1,500 refugees arrive every year. >> as long as we are part of the united nations treaty and willing to take in refugees who through no fault of their own have been displaced from their homes, clarkston will continue to welcome them. >> clarkston and its refugees, even the younger ones, not immune to the growing unease and debate over immigration. >> i felt welcome when i came here, we were like by everyone

and last year or the year before , some people were like, more hostile towards us. >> very scary and i told my kids , we do not have to worry had. >> 10 undocumented somalis were arrested here and are preparing to send them back to some all you. many lived here for years, allowed to stay because conditions in their home country had been so bad. >> if you let me say -- they 17 years, and then i am deported, some did not have a chance to say goodbye. >> my husband has been detained. >> as the families wait for word , immigration authorities say none have refugee status and the majority of some sort of criminal conviction. despite the ongoing violence and famine in somalia, since last year, the protections that have

been in place, even for the undocumented, are no longer. in a statement to matter of fact, a spokesperson for us customs and immigration enforcement says quote "these are all unlawfully present foreign nationals who had their day in court and were ordered removed from the country by a federal immigration judge." >> 19 year old mohammed rage is waiting for word about his dad, who never came home after a routine check-in with immigration officials. one of the detainees with no criminal record-he's a radio journalist, and has been in the u.s. for 16 years. >> he has never committed a crime, so i don't know why he is being locked up like a criminal. >> meantime, the refugee baristas say they feel safe and supported. refuge coffee requires every employee to go through 4 hours of job training every week, preparing them for the american workforce. critical skills, as most have only a matter of months before they're expected to survive on their own.

>> one of the nice things about georgia is we have one of the highest self- sufficiency rates for newly arrived refugees in the country and it generally hovers around 90% of households are self-sufficient within the first six months of arrival. >> thank you. >> they said intelligent guy is someone who can adapt his life to any condition he find himself and. there was no other way. >> no other way they say but to reinvent themselves and start dreaming new dreams. >> my dream is to have a home and own a business. the american dream. >> i am jessica gomez for matter of fact with soledad o'brien. >> next, they look like most american children but they are not. >> they know what life is like in the refugee camps and of a have a chance to make a better. >> the coach giving children a

shot. >> and a pro football player finds fans in an unlikely place. >> walking around with muscles, something the children wanted to touch. >> ben watson visits young fans. ♪

soledad: education is a basic human right but for millions of refugee children, going to school is not an option. according to a united nations report, only 50% of refugee children have access to primary education. in the united states, 40% of refugees resettled in 2015 or under the age of 18. one georgia community has an academy dedicated to refugee education. it is providing students with much more than just the basics. diane roberts has a look. ♪ >> those of us who have played

sports understand the power of a team and that translates in the classroom and into the community , you immediately have a good response. >> soccer coach is teaching these children a critical skill. how to play together as a team. doubly powerful because they have something deeper and, -- deep in common, a shared history, they are all refugees, driven out of faraway lands by poverty, hunger, war. >> they come with one suitcase, a family with one suitcase and when you flee war, you do not have time to pack up. they know they are lucky to be here, less than 1% of the refugee population gets resettled and they know what life is like back home and in the refugee camps and know they have a chance to me could

better. >> she emigrated from jordan in her 20's. leaving her family and culture behind. >> when i came here and i lost all of that, it was finding family again. >> she wanted other refugees to find families so she turned her soccer team into a school. it is name -- its name taken from the word refugee. this is a place for normally warring factions like sunnis and shiites or north and south sudanese work together on and off the field. >> good morning. >> this a greater has found a sense of family at the school along with 86 other children. >> i like living here. sometimes it is fun and sometimes it can be boring but it is ok. you get to see other people from other coulters. >> they fled civil war in the

sudan. she was just nine. >> i felt like failing but i do not want to fail again. >> she does not feel that way at the school where 13 full-time staff members teach children academics, and give them a sense of home. staff -- they work with parents. >> the initial adjustment is difficult because they do not know their place. >> it helps to see children thrive. her reading level went from kindergarten to eighth grade in just two years. >> i am still very happy. she is living a lot. >> playing soccer, reading books, and singing of a new land. >> ♪ we are one that we are

different ♪ >> in clarkston georgia for matter of fact with soledad o'brien, i am diane roberts. ♪ >> coming up next, this nfl player openly shares his faith. >> we talked and they knew we were christians and they were muslims. >> wife he says americans -- why he says americans have painted muslims in a box. some assembly required, the furniture company that built a refugee camp. ♪

soledad: these images show the devastation of the civil war in syria. six years of war, leaving children and families in chaos with half of the country's prewar population of 11 million people forced to flee their home

with 6 million people displaced internally and 5 million seeking safety in neighboring countries. lebanon is the temporary home for more than one million syrian refugees and provides help to more refugees per capita than any other country in the world. with no formal refugee camps or fear of permanent resettlement. in may, baltimore ravens tight end benjamin watson joined a group of pastors to a mission to lebanon to get a look at the largest humanitarian crisis of our time. here is how he describes his experience in his own words. >> i have no idea why i decided to go to lebanon but my wife said you go and when your wife tells you to do something, you do it. i felt like, with everything we see on the news when it comes to syria, the crisis, lebanon, refugees, i wanted to experience it firsthand. >> no blankets.

only these to protect them. >> we went for one week, a short trip, only on the ground for three days, travel was by van. the first day, we were a few miles from the syrian border where a lot of informal settlements are. i would have my phone and i would show the children a picture of my children. they would hide in the tent and looked out of the window and i said, these are my children. eventually, they would come and see who the stranger is. a lot of people they do not lift weights and walking around with muscles, that was something the children wanted to touch, i have pictures of children hanging on my arm. seeing what was in my bicep. you try to find ways to connect

with them. to show them that people in other parts of the world care about their situation. in the united states, i heard everybody wants to come to america and we should let everybody in and that is not what i heard from the families i talked to. i heard, we want to go home. we were in a childhood development center, education center. on the wall are pictures, children love to draw and these were aged six to 12 and a picture was of a tank with missiles being shot out of it. there was a child i was crying. they said it was a child running away from war. that was part of the reason i went, to speak about what i saw and to tell people that these are real people with real concerns and real pain. anytime you go to a different

situation, out of your comfort zone, to another country or neighborhood, or speak to someone else with a different perspective, it changes you a little bit and makes you think more about your own convictions. when i was in lebanon, talking to syrian families, sitting in their tent, on the floor, i said you know what, sir, i do not know why i am here with you and everything i can do but i will be a voice for you. >> coming up next -- soledad: when we talk about refugees and refugee camps, you do not think about electricity bills. >> and innovation thing the $1.5 million energy bill for one camp. >> every day it presents its own challenge.

soledad: when we talk about refugees and refugee camps, you do not immediately think about electricity bills but one of the biggest challenges in any camp is how to provide an

infrastructure foror daily life. electricity means to last longer and mobile phones and laptops say charged, making it possible families to communicate with relatives and bathrooms can be used day and night and children can study. do not forget cooling and heating the camps, depending on the season. one experience in jordan -- experiment in jordan could be a game changer, a solar farm built with funds with the ikea foundation is providing electricity 24-7 at a united nations refugee camp in jordan with two megawatt solar plant at a refugee camp, supplies power for 20,000 syrian refugees living in two villages. they now have a more reliable power source. >> it means the world to a refugee, to have electricity and have a little cool from a fan

and a hot summer day, or heat at night in the cold. you feel more secure and more human. you feel like you are living in a more dignified life with electricity. soledad: the solar farm is a model of the united nations things could work and other refugee camps and say the plant saves them $1.5 million per year and provides jordan with help in meeting its goal of generating 20% of its electricity from renewable sources. it is a win-win. >> when we return -- he is an nfl football player and a family man. five children under nine years old, here is game changing advice on fatherhood.

soledad: earlier in the show you heard baltimore ravens tight end benjamin watson describe his trip to lebanon and his visit to the refugee camps there. he brought the lessons back to share with his own family and with others. watson and his wife have five children, ranging in age from one to 8.

this busy guy balances family life with football, and with a growing career as an author. his second book, "the new dad's playbook" came out recently. here's what he had to say about what he calls the "biggest game of your life." ben: i've learned from fatherhood -- i don't have it all together, that i'm not perfect. i've learned how to roll with the punches sometimes. from my father, i learned integrity. my father's my hero even to this day. some of us have had fathers some of us didn't some have had fathers, we want to be like, father's we want to punch in the face if we ever saw him, but no matter what has happened with that relationship, you have what it takes to be a dad that can set the next generation on the right course, that you're needed. soledad: watson said the idea for the book came from his wife

and is inspired, in part, by conversations in the locker room with teammates. i'm soledad o'brien -- we'll see you next week for "matter of fact." ♪

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